Chapter 1

"Daniel! You bastard, where the hell are you? Get over here and scrub my back!" Jennifer Walsh's disdainful voice rang out in the luxurious bathtub. Next to her sat her best friend, Charlene Geller. The two soaked comfortably in a temperature-controlled bath, their long, fair legs kicking up and splashing water. They weren't just best friends—they were famously known as the "Twin Beauties of Qranross". Both were recently honored as two of the Top Ten Outstanding Female Entrepreneurs in Qranross. Hearing Jennifer's loud call, Charlene quickly nudged her. "Jennifer, are you crazy? I'm still here! How can you call your husband to scrub your back with me around?" Jennifer waved her hand dismissively. "Husband? He's nothing but a fool to me. He's just an obedient dog in my eyes. What's the big deal if a dog happens to see you?" At that moment, the bathroom door opened. Dressed in tattered clothes, Daniel Ashcroft entered with a mop in hand and a goofy grin on his face. He had just been cleaning the bathroom, and the sour smell on him mixed unpleasantly with the humidity in the air. His wet feet left dirty footprints behind as he stepped onto the bathroom floor. Upon seeing his shabby appearance, Jennifer narrowed her eyes in annoyance. She abruptly stood up, grabbed a whip from beside her, and lashed out at him. Four lashes landed in quick succession. Blood instantly seeped from the cuts on his face and back while his already ragged clothes were reduced to hanging strips of fabric. "You bastard! Don't you know how to remove your shoes before entering the bathroom? I've been feeding you for three years, and you still don't understand basic rules!" Three more lashes followed, and Daniel's foolishly handsome face was now marked with fresh wounds. Satisfied after venting her frustration, Jennifer relaxed and leaned forward against an inflatable cushion by the bathtub. "Come here. Scrub my back and give me a massage." Still smiling dumbly, he obediently approached and massaged her back with utmost care. Despite facing two stunning, barely dressed women, his expression remained utterly blank. Charlene laughed and remarked, "Jennifer, you didn't marry a husband—you brought home a slave." Jennifer reveled in the massage, a smug look on her face. "I only married him three years ago to get my hands on his family's wealth. Initially, my grandfather wanted to get rid of him once he was no longer useful—dump him in the desert and let him fend for himself. "But then, I realized keeping him around as a dog was much more amusing!" She laughed before adding, "Whenever I'm in a bad mood, whipping him a few times or making him lick my feet instantly lifts my spirits." Charlene sighed. "I envy you. You have a massive fortune now and a personal punching bag to vent your frustrations on. I, on the other hand, am drowning in stress. My grandfather is gravely ill, my business is in crisis, and I have no one to take it out on." Jennifer chuckled mischievously. "How about I lend Daniel to you for a few days? Torture him anyhow you like. It doesn't matter even if you kill him." "Really?" Charlene's eyes gleamed with wicked excitement. Not long after, she left Jennifer's house, dragging Daniel and the whip along with her back to her villa in Stellar Heights. Charlene sat on the couch inside the luxurious living room, crossing one leg over the other. She pointed at Daniel and commanded, "Kneel and massage my legs." He did as he was told, gently patting and pressing her legs. She raised an eyebrow, chuckling. "Your technique is quite refined. Jennifer has trained you well. To think that you were once the heir of the wealthiest family in Qranross and a famous playboy admired by many… Who would have thought you would end up reduced to a slave and treated like a dog?" He remained silent, his hands carefully massaging her legs. Feeling an unfamiliar sensation, she frowned slightly. Thinking she was dissatisfied, he anxiously increased the pressure of his massage. "Ah!" Charlene gasped. A sudden tingle ran through her body, stirring a strange warmth. Blushing with embarrassment and anger, she swiftly lifted her leg and kicked him hard in the stomach. "Bastard, where did you learn such lecherous techniques? Go squat over there!" Without a word, Daniel obediently shuffled to the corner and squatted down. She stormed off to her bedroom and returned moments later with a small packet of white pills in hand. Walking over to him, she sneered. "These are the world's most advanced experimental drugs for treating heart failure. They've only been tested on monkeys, but lucky you—you get to try them first." Before he could react, she shoved three pills into his mouth. Forced to swallow them, Daniel soon felt his stomach churning violently. Unable to hold back, he retched forcefully, vomiting all over Charlene's expensive dress and chest. Charlene screamed. "You filthy thing! Look at what you've done!" Gagging and on the verge of vomiting herself, she grabbed the whip and lashed him furiously. After a dozen lashes, she finally stopped, storming off to the bathroom to clean herself. Under the shower, she scrubbed her chest over and over, but the thought of Daniel's vomit still made her feel disgusted. Meanwhile, in the living room, Daniel lay sprawled on the floor, covered in fresh wounds and panting heavily. After vomiting several more times, a thumb-sized emerald pearl suddenly fell out of his mouth. In an instant, a sharp pain shot through his mind. Groaning, he slowly opened his eyes, his expression shifting from confusion to clarity. Fragments of memories from the past five years flooded his mind. "Five years ago, I accidentally swallowed the Celestial Soul Pearl, which caused my soul to be transported to another world. For five years, my soul lived in another world while my body remained here, mentally incapacitated. "Three years ago, my parents and senior company executives perished in a mysterious fire, and soon after, my family's fortune was divided up by outsiders. "Jennifer married me solely to gain control over my family's assets. Since then, she's taken almost all of the Ashcroft family's assets. "For the past three years, she had repeatedly beaten and humiliated me, and today, she treated me like a dog, offering me to Charlene to amuse herself. Charlene was no better—she even forced me to take poison! "Fortunately, because of the poison, I vomited out the Celestial Soul Pearl, allowing my soul to return from the cultivation world, Heavenfall Realm, back to Earth!" Daniel lowered his head and picked up the emerald pearl before him. This emerald pearl was called the Celestial Soul Pearl. Five years ago, he obtained this pearl by a stroke of luck. Unknowingly, he swallowed it, and as a result, his soul traveled to the cultivation world, where he worked on his martial arts. It was only now that his soul was able to return through the passageway after he finally vomited it out. "I'm finally back! Jennifer tortured me for three years, leaving me covered in wounds! That damn woman! "The Celestial Soul Pearl has a storage function. I had previously placed the Essence Purification Pill and Vital Surge Pill in it while in Heavenfall Realm. I wonder if I can take them out here on Earth," he thought. Daniel held the Celestial Soul Pearl and closed his eyes, sensing with his mind. Two pills appeared in his hands out of thin air the next moment. "I can indeed take the Essence Purification Pill and Vital Surge Pill out! This is great! I can easily become a superhuman on Earth with these two pills!" Without any hesitation, he immediately swallowed the pills and sat cross-legged to refine them. Five minutes later, the Essence Purification Pill was refined, and Daniel's body expelled a thick layer of accumulated blood and impurities from his pores. Ten minutes later, he felt a sharp pain in his Essence Chamber, followed by a surge of powerful spiritual energy rapidly circulating between his Essence Chamber and 12 meridians. "Ha! The Energy Refining Phase is done!" He leaped up with a sudden burst of energy. Sensing the foul smell on his body, he couldn't help but shake his head. Then, he took long strides toward the bathroom. In the bathroom, Charlene was still vigorously rubbing her chest. When she saw Daniel push the door open and walk in, she screamed in shock. "Bastard! Who let you in? Get out of here!" she yelled angrily.